


Twice

by weebiewrites



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Identity Reveal, Episode Fix-it: s03 Chat Blanc, Episode: s03 Chat Blanc, F/M, Identity Reveal, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug Identity Reveal, One-Sided Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:01:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27488500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weebiewrites/pseuds/weebiewrites
Summary: When Adrien realizes the impossibility of Marinette being Ladybug after he rashly confesses to her thinking that she is, he cannot find it in himself to let her down. Instead, he unwittingly finds himself falling in love with the same person twice. A spin on the events in Chat Blanc.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 13
Kudos: 84





	1. Chapter 1

Adrien had a bad habit of not thinking. Sometimes, he didn’t think before he acted, and sometimes he plainly didn’t think at all. He was rash and straightforward, and he rarely worried about or even considered the consequences of his actions. 

At least, not in the moment.

Adrien usually did whatever he could to keep himself from having to sit down and think. On the average day, his schedule was so full that he rarely even had time to do that, anyways. He preferred it that way. Whenever his father didn’t have somewhere for him to be, Adrien tried to fill his time by hanging out with his friends, or going out as Chat Noir. However, whenever he was home, he was alone. And whenever he was alone, the thoughts came crashing into his mind, whether he wanted them to or not. 

  
He expected to be confronted by such thoughts when he returned home from his fencing tournament earlier that day. But, upon opening the door to his room, he caught a glimpse of a red blur jumping out of his window. A gift sat conspicuously on his bed — a gift he assumed was left by Ladybug. A gift which was signed “Marinette,” and not, “Ladybug.” When he picked it up, he noticed the smell of fresh ink, as if it had just been signed. Upon opening the gift, he found a beret which was definitely made by Marinette. With hearts bejeweled on it.

Adrien _did_ think for a few moments, as he idly ran his fingers over the hearts. Details about his friend Marinette, as well as events he had previously considered to be coincidences swirled around in his head. Marinette’s sharp and witty behavior around Chat Noir (which was very much unlike her usual stuttering self), her seemingly constant sleep deprivation, and, most notably, her frequent disappearances during Akuma attacks suddenly seemed very suspicious. Adrien’s mind nearly went into overdrive when he put it together. Ladybug’s strange prejudice against Chloe, her extra concern for Adrien and other members of his class, the times she would slip into a blushing, stuttering, mess, specifically when the name “Adrien Agreste” came up — everything just seemed to click together perfectly. 

Once he had made the connections, all traces of common sense and intelligent thought left him. He could have sworn that he saw Plagg chase after them as they streamed out of his ear. Adrien had made up his mind in that moment that Marinette was Ladybug, and that Ladybug was in love with Adrien Agreste. 

He had to confess to her immediately. And he did.

He was in such a hurry that he jumped out his window as Adrien, only transforming into Chat Noir in his last seconds of freefall. Clutching her gift, he propelled through the bustling streets looking for her. It was almost a miracle that he even found her, as he was searching completely blindly. 

He fell into a nearby alley where he de-transformed and ran to catch up with her. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her. Her hair was down, and… it looked really nice. Had Marinette always been so pretty?

Adrien briskly shoved the beret on his head and began running towards her. Her friends from class were rallying around her in a circle, seeming to be cheering for her. As he got closer, Alya noticed him running towards them. She nudged Marinette to turn around with a wide-eyed look of disbelief painted on her face. 

Marinette, _Ladybug_ , turned to Adrien, a blush covering her face. When his gaze met her sky blue eyes, Adrien’s heart jumped.

He confessed immediately. And she accepted.

They melted into a kiss. His first kiss. It was amazing. She was amazing. 

And just like that, he was dating Ladybug. A small part of him said it was too good to be true, but that was a thought he could deal with later. And deal with it he did.

It wasn’t until much later that night, when he laid down to go to bed, that the thoughts came crashing in. And, unfortunately, it suddenly occurred to Adrien that he may have made a mistake. For, in all of the excitement of thinking that Marinette, who just confessed her love to him with a gift, was Ladybug, he had somehow forgotten that it was completely impossible for the two of them to be the same person. Because, he had, in fact, undoubtedly, seen both of them at the same time. When Ladybug gave the Mouse Miraculous to Marinette. 

Adrien’s eyes popped wide open. He sat up, grabbed a pillow from beside him, pressed it into his face, and screamed. Plagg jolted in surprise next to him. 

He was a horrible person. He had just confessed his love to one of his dearest friends, just because he incorrectly assumed she was Ladybug. Marinette apparently had genuine feelings for Adrien, but he was in love with Ladybug. And now they were dating, because he was an idiot.

If he had taken just a few more seconds to think before he quite literally jumped at the chance to confess his feelings to “Ladybug,” he would have realized it was far more likely that Ladybug was somehow friends with Marinette. She knew her well enough to entrust her with a Miraculous, so of course it was possible that Marinette had asked a favor of Ladybug, like delivering a gift for her. 

But now, it was too late, and every solution he could think of involved a heartbroken Marinette, and a ruined friendship.

_“Hey, Marinette, sorry that I said I’ve loved you since I first laid eyes on you, I thought you were someone else. I still think you’re pretty cool though.”_

Adrien screamed into his pillow again.

“Okay, kid. What the hell’s wrong? I’m trying to sleep here.” Plagg said when Adrien’s scream had teetered out. 

“You were right, Plagg.” Adrien mumbled through the pillow.  
  


“Hey, flattery will get you nowhere… well, actually-”  
  


“There’s no way Marinette can be Ladybug!” Adrien cried, shoving the pillow aside.

“A little late to be deciding that now.” Plagg remarked. Adrien glared at him.

“I know!” he said, a bit louder than he intended to. “I’m an idiot!” 

“You said it…”  
  


“Plagg.” Adrien lowered his tone and leveled his gaze. Plagg took the hint, and dropped the smugness. “Seriously. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do.” 

Plagg studied Adrien for a moment, looking him up and down.

“Who says you have to _do_ anything?” He finally said with a shrug. 

“Plagg, _I messed up_.”

“Says you.”

“Huh?” 

Plagg scoffed, as if the answer was obvious.

“So Marinette’s not Ladybug,” he started. “She’s still pretty nice.”

“But Plagg,” Adrien protested, “I’m not in love with Marinette, I’m-”

“In love with Ladybug, yeah, yeah, yeah...” The Kwami sighed, rolling his eyes. “But can you look me in the eye and tell me that dating Marinette would be the end of the world for you?”

Adrien blinked.

“I-”

“Yeah, didn’t think so.” Plagg interrupted. “So I say do nothing. No need to ruin a perfectly good thing. Maybe slow it down a little, get to know her better, but-”

“No way.” Adrien interrupted. “That’s just plain wrong. Dating one person when you still have feelings for another…” He shook his head, sighing. “I couldn’t do that. Not to Marinette.”

“Oh, loosen up, would you?” Plagg whined. “You’re a teenager in a high-school relationship. It’s not like you’re getting married or something. You’re exploring your options! Figuring out what you like! There’s nothing wrong with it. And it’s way more common than you think.”

Adrien paused for a moment. 

“I still don’t like it.” he said quietly, throwing himself back down onto his bed. “It _feels_ wrong.”

“Oh what do I know? It’s not like I’m thousands of years old or anything.” Plagg said as he settled on a pillow next to Adrien. Adrien rolled over.

“Shut up.” he said, closing his eyes. “You sound like my dad.”

“That’s offensive. I have a reputation to uphold as the biggest asshole in this house. You saying I need to step up my game?” 

Adrien didn’t reply. Instead, he tried to doze off. He still wasn’t sure what he should do, or what he even could do, but thinking had gotten him nowhere that day. Thinking is what got him into the mess he was in in the first place. So, he decided to empty his head. He would deal with whatever happened as it happened, as he always did. 

Of course, just telling himself that didn’t make him any less anxious about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? Me starting a new project instead of working on my existing ones?
> 
> This has actually been sitting in my docs for a long time. I recently looked it over and decided to keep working on it.
> 
> It never sat quite right with me that Adrien confessed to Marinette right after finding out she's Ladybug. It feels like he's more in love with the idea of her being Ladybug than he is Marinette as she is. I guess this is my attempt at fixing that, haha.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried very hard to keep this fic PG, but Alya (or really any of the characters) saying "fuck" is too enticing. As such, I have changed the rating from G to T.

As he walked up the steps to the school the next morning, a voice inside Adrien told him that if he pretended hard enough, everything would simply go away. He could just pretend that everything was normal, and it would be. The consequences of his actions would disappear, vanishing as suddenly as they had been created. 

That voice was crushed as Marinette’s deceivingly small frame crashed into him, enveloping him in a hug that nearly knocked him over. 

“Adrien!” She exclaimed, voice dripping with a sweet giddiness Adrien hadn’t ever heard from  _ anyone  _ before, much less shy, quiet Marinette. He cringed as his heart melted under compulsion. He was screwed. 

Adrien reluctantly embraced her. As he wrapped his arms around her, she let out a sweet sigh that, once again, melted his heart. The hug lasted an uncomfortably long time, which was surprisingly pleasant. Even as he subtly tried to loosen his grip to indicate that it was time to pull away from each other, she stayed. Eventually, Adrien gave up trying to prematurely end the embrace, and let it run its course. He really didn’t mind, and he actually found himself enjoying it. Adrien had been this close to Marinette before, but he had somehow never noticed how nice she smelled -- like warm vanilla with a hint of cherry blossom. He also found that she was  _ soft _ , and  _ warm… _

He was  _ so  _ screwed. 

“Oh!” Marinette said, suddenly pulling away. Adrien felt just a twinge of disappointment. “Now that we’re-” she paused, her eyes suddenly widening and a blush covering her face. “You know…” Her voice cracked as she said that, and she jumped in surprise as it did. She let out a nervous chuckle, looked down sheepishly, and started fidgeting with her thumbs.

“Um!” She continued, seemingly recovered. “Should I call you something special? Like Honey? Or Sweetie? Or maybe… Darling?” She was beaming, practically glowing.

Adrien felt his face flushing.

He was  _ fucked. _

“A-Adrien’s fine…” He said, instinctively moving his hand to scratch at nothing on the back of his neck. Marinette deflated.

“Oh…” She mumbled. She seemed genuinely disappointed. And Adrien felt genuine guilt as he watched a slight pout form on her lips.

He couldn’t do this. It wasn’t fair to her. She was head-over-heels, and she deserved someone who felt the same. She was a good friend, and while it was true that he was somewhat attracted to her, he had confused her for someone else. He couldn’t, in good conscience, pretend like she was the one he had loved all along. He had to explain himself. 

“Look, Marinette… I-”

“Look who it is,” someone called from behind them. Adrien turned to find Alya and Nino walking up. Marinette turned and waved to the two. 

“Congrats, guys!” Nino said, going in for the fist bump. Marinette obliged him with a giggle. “I never thought I’d see the day.” 

“Tell me about it!” Alya chimed in with a hearty laugh. She crossed behind Adrien and grabbed him by the shoulders, peeking over one of them to continue the conversation. "I can't believe our favorite oblivious idiots  _ both _ wised up in one day!" She playfully shook him.

Adrien chuckled nervously, while Marinette pouted indignantly at Alya.

"Wised up?" Adrien said, tilting his head slightly. "What do you mean?" 

Alya shook her head with a laugh as she let go of him and stepped to the side. 

"Well for one, Marinette finally learned how to spell her name-"

"Hey-!" Marinette protested, seemingly offended. Alya ignored her.

"And you," she continued, pointing a finger at Adrien. "Finally realized the difference between 'friend,' and 'just a friend.'" 

Nino snickered at her comment. Marinette elbowed him, which only made him laugh harder. Eventually, Marinette joined him in his laughter, and the two of them nearly toppled over as they tried to lean on each other for support. Alya rolled her eyes at them, but in a fond sort of way. Adrien didn’t really get what was so funny. 

After quite a long time of the two of them trying and failing to compose themselves, the 10 minute warning bell rang. This seemed to somewhat straighten them out, and they started to make their way towards the school. Alya and Adrien trailed behind them. Adrien couldn’t help but to be privy to their conversation as the four of them walked up the steps into the school.

(It’s not that funny!)   
  
(Then why were you laughing?)

(Cause you’re a dork.)

(Months, Marinette! I had to listen to him tell himself that for  _ months _ !)

(Well I’m  _ so  _ glad you found humor in my suffering...)

It was at this moment that certain things started to click for Adrien.

“Alya?” He asked. He still needed to confirm his suspicions. 

“Hm?” She replied.

“Um… How long has Marinette-”

“She’s been head-over-heels for you pretty much since the day she met you,” she said, very matter-of-factly. 

“Oh.”

Oh.

Adrien felt a terrible guilt wash over him. There was no way he could go through with this. As soon as he could get her alone, he would have to let her down as carefully as he could. Of course, that was easier said than done… 

“I actually find it kind of strange…” Alya said, pulling Adrien out of his thoughts. She halted to a stop on the stairs, and Adrien didn’t notice until he was a few steps ahead of her. When he turned to look at her, she had a dark expression. “Because, according to you, you’ve also been in love with Marinette ‘the moment you laid eyes on her.’”

Adrien froze. 

“Getting Marinette to confess is one thing. I mean, that girl’s a mess. But I never took you as one who lacks confidence.” Alya looked him up and down, and Adrien cringed under her scrutiny. “So, after all this time, why now? Unless of course, you’re lying…” 

Adrien felt a cold sweat run down his neck. Alya stepped up to him, silently staring him down. 

“So what changed?” she asked flatly. Adrien reached to scratch an invisible itch behind his neck.

“Well, nothing really-” Adrien yelped as Alya grabbed him by the collar, pulling him down to meet her eyes. 

“Listen,” she said in a low voice. “I don’t really care what changed your mind all of the sudden. All I know is Marinette deserves the world, and if you break her heart, _I will fucking destroy you_ _and everything you hold dear.”_

Adrien stared at her like a deer caught in headlights. There was a long silence between them, in which time they both established an understanding with each other. Then, as if nothing happened, Alya pulled away and slapped him on the back with a big grin. 

“I’m so happy for you!” She beamed, before running to catch up with Nino and Marinette, who were painfully oblivious to what had just happened. 

“Sheesh,” Plagg remarked from inside Adrien’s shirt. “Good luck with  _ that _ , kid.” 

Adrien laughed. A nervous, almost psychotic, “I-can’t-believe-this-is-happening-to-me” laugh. His mind fuzzed. Every solution he could come up with for the situation now led to a dead end. 

“Adrien!” He heard a chipper voice call. “Are you coming? Class is about to start!” 

Adrien shoved his thoughts deep down, emptying his mind. For now, he had to go to class, and he would deal with that first. He ran up the steps, catching up with his friends. He tried to ignore the way Marinette clinged to him as they made their way into the classroom. But he couldn’t ignore the collective “Aww…” from his classmates when the two of them stepped in the doorway. 

Once again, Adrien shoved it down. He could think about this later. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy late Valentine's day!
> 
> I have so much fun characterizing Adrien as the densest mf'er on the planet. Is it 100% canon? No. But you can pry it away from my cold dead hands. 
> 
> Adrien, when confronted with any confirmation that Marinette likes him/his friends don't hate him: "Hear that? That's the sound of my pea brain rattling around in my fucking skull."


End file.
